[The Fourth Year]

Then came the fourth year. In this year, the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, dispatched the party who accompanied ‘Adal and al-Qārah and were betrayed by them at al-Rajī‘. A group from ‘Adal and al-Qārah had come to the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, in Safar of this year, at the end of the third year after the Hijrah. They claimed to have embraced Islam and asked him to send some Muslims with them to teach them the Quran and instruct them in the religion. He, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, sent six of his Companions with them, appointing Marthad ibn Abī Marthad as their leader. They set out with these people, but when they reached al-Rajī‘, a watering place belonging to Hudhayl in the Hijaz, their companions betrayed them and summoned Hudhayl against them. I have already given a brief account of this in the fourth volume of my commentary on the Jāmi‘ of al-‘Utbiyyah, so I have kept its mention here brief to avoid undue length.

In Safar of this year, the expedition to Bi’r Ma‘ūnah took place. We have already discussed its cause and the reports concerning it in the fourth volume of our commentary on the Jāmi‘ of al-‘Utbiyyah, so I have kept its mention here brief to avoid undue length.

In Rabī‘ al-Awwal of this year, the expedition against Banū al-Nadīr took place. The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, marched against them, and they held out against him in their fortifications for six nights. He ordered their palm trees to be cut down and burned. They then surrendered and asked the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, to spare their lives and allow them to leave, taking as much of their property as their camels could carry, except for weapons. They carried these belongings to Khaybar, while some of them went to Syria. We have already related the cause of this expedition and the remainder of its account in the fourth volume of our commentary on the Jāmi‘ of al-‘Utbiyyah. We therefore consider that sufficient, without recounting it here, in the interest of accessibility and brevity.

In Jumādā al-Ūlā of this year, the expedition of Dhāt al-Riqā‘ took place. The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, set out on the fifth of the month against Banū Muhārib ibn Tha‘labah of Ghatafān, and reached Nakhlah. There he encountered a force from Ghatafān. The two sides drew close to one another, but no fighting took place. The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, led the prayer of fear there, then returned.